A tip popped into my head as a memory this morning while cleaning my teeth - always watch out for the unexpected. I had a cousin, Alan, a couple of years younger than myself. When we were still very young his parents had to leave him with us for a few days. When we were cleaning our teeth before going to bed Alan spat out the toothpaste immediately as if it were poison and my mum tried to get him to keep it in his mouth long enough to clean his teeth. It didn't work and after lots of questions mum found that he couldn't breathe through his nose and the mouthful of toothpaste and water put him in a panic. She told his parents who were unaware of the problem - I think they had just left him to it and he was probably giving his teeth a cursory brush or not at all. A hospital visit confirmed a natural blockage in his nose and an operation sorted it. We realised then why he'd tended to go around with his mouth open all the time and the poor lad was forever being told off for it. He was a happier lad after the op!

Very true Tiz. I had a mate when I was a lad who had the same problem and it was only when the NHS started in 1948 that his parents took him to the doctor and he had a simple operation to remove polyps from his nasal passages.
If you have a child who habitually walks round with hands facing backwards go to the doctor. It usually means they have constant low level stomach pain that they have got used to. Kids walk round like that after stomach operations..... I learned that when Janet had acute appendicitis.

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

Experts on child care will tell you that a child who habitually rocks when sat in a chair should be considered as being at risk of having some mental issue. This is not always the case. Janet always rocked when sat but was definitely not mentally retarded. When she had her emergency operation for appendicitis the surgeon told me that she had a twist in her gut of long standing and it had been a close run thing. It looks as though the rocking was her way of dealing with constant discomfort. We had noted that she didn't eat like her sisters but seemed perfectly healthy. So today's tip is that if you note something like that, pursue the cause, it may be important!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

Today's tip is "When in doubt, adopt Worst Case contingency planning". You will be accused of being pessimistic but when the crap hits the fan your critics will realise you were actually a realist. This is particularly useful in the UK at the moment!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

If your children show signs of wanting to make a career in politics, try do dissuade them. In the present climate politicians are joining the ranks of other professions that are universally denigrated.

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

Politics and economics is still a very popular degree course......
Remember the old sailor's adage, "One hand for the ship and one for yourself". Very useful for people like Maz suffering acute back pain. Always use one hand to support and control when bending even for the lightest task.
Many long years of back pain taught me this and it is second nature now!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

Sorry, I didn't mean to be obtuse. Yes, I was thinking about Andy Murray. I have often said that tennis at that level is no longer a game..... This seems to be acceptable to many people but I'm afraid it does nothing for me.

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

This is another of those instances where you wonder how a company survives! Read on...
Today's tip - when you start or renew an insurance policy always check the documents you receive carefully. Don't assume the insurer will have got it all correct, even if all they had to do was issue the same details as the previous year. I've just renewed house insurance and it's been the same policy with the same company for several years now. When I got the documents I noticed that the sentence `Has the property ever been underpinned' now had `Yes' next to it whereas in previous years it was `No' which is what I told them when I first took out the policy. I rang and asked why they had changed the answer and they replied that it `must have been a blip in their system'. I said I found this hard to believe and they promised to look into it, change the answer back to No and send new documents. They arrived with a covering letter which stated `I have checked with the underwriters and it is known we have an error on our system that randomly gives the wrong answer to this question. I have been assured that it has been raised with our IT team as a fault.' [My italics]

Hmmmmm... A likely story Tiz!
Bodge, I saw that research and what interested me is that the tackler rather than the target suffers most.
Never forget that cheap chemicals like bleach and washing soda are very effective germicides.
During the F&M outbreak of 1967 the disinfectant manufacturers had a field day and despite their best efforts there were shortages. Towards the end of the outbreak the authorities informed us that the best germicide was the cheapest, a solution of washing soda in hot water....... Evidence showed that the disease couldn't tolerate alkaline conditions.
On a similar note, a manufacturer of sterile wound dressings once told me that the contract he had with Johnson and Johnson required him to use black plastic covered work surfaces as this was the most antiseptic colour. So next time you get a new kitchen, specify black worktops!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

If you are going through any sort of physical attrition due to ill health, don't over think the symptoms, you are under attack and this can have some strange, seemingly unrelated effects. Just concentrate on getting better and the symptoms will take care of themselves!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

What " symptoms and strange, seemingly unrelated effects" do you have, Stanley?
( got a few of my own at the moment)
Nice to see you Mags. (Taking pride of place there in the dog's chair...I have sat there myself). Your hair looks lovely and really suits you.

Maz. Mainly the fact that I am so well at the moment, I can't help wondering if it's something to do with getting the cancer tumour out of my system. Also a lot more predictability in bowel movements and water management, things that often deteriorate as you get older. Only small changes but noticeable and I can't help associating the improvements with the care I am getting.
There is also the fact that I decided it was a bad idea to be weight conscious and restricting intake at the same time as my body was fighting cancer. On the whole I am better with a bit of 'excess' flesh though I have to be careful as extra weight means more stress on knees! It's a trade-off but I am happy with things as they are.
Perhaps that's today's tip. Don't diet when your immune system is working hard. Remember the old saying, "Feed a cold and starve a fever".

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

I've been trying to get in touch with my old boss Richard Drinkall for years but have always failed for a variety of reasons. If you have a daughter like Margaret who has lots of contacts in the Clitheroe area, Richard and Ursula are at Waddington, she can solve the problem. We go to visit next Friday! So the tip is a repeat, cultivate relations with your daughters!

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!

The snooker didn't turn out well, my mate Ronnie lost 10-4.
The early bird gets the worm. This proved to be true this morning I have seen the lunar eclipse and as the cloud is coming in late comers will miss it! (Just been out, total obscurity and blood red. The best view I have ever had in my life of a blood moon!.)

Stanley Challenger Graham
Stanley's View
scg1936 at talktalk.net

"Beware of certitude" (Jimmy Reid)
The floggings will continue until morale improves!